Cutthroat Sea
=Overview= A pirate-themed multiplayer Wiki strategy game based on the text-based online RPG Necromundus (jointhesaga.com 3005). Players command fleets on a grid that represents the Cutthroat Sea in the realm of Atrum Viscus. The Sea Master manages the moves of players on a weekly basis. Players get six moves each week per ship in their fleet. These moves fall under the following categories: Travel, Exploration, Trade, Parlay, Combat. Moves will be considered on an as-entered basis. So, if Player A engages Player B in a Combat move as his first step in this week, while Player B is trying to conduct a Trade move as her first step, Player B's Trade move is negated until the combat engagement can be resolved. =General Rules= *1. Who can play? Anyone with an OtherVerse Wiki character page from any jointhesaga.com game that features at least one badge. For the initial rollout of Cutthroat Sea, we allow a maximum of 10 players at any given time. *2. How do I get started? Send e-mail to cutthroat@jointhesaga.com indicating the name you want for your pirate leader and for the fleet. We'll set up a Wiki page for you. *3. What comes in the starter fleet? All players start with three Fair quality ship markers. *4. How do I improve the quality of my fleet? Earn badges for your OtherVerse Wiki character pages and combine that with money earned through Trade. Get enough badges, make enough money, and you can upgrade or even add more ships to your fleet. *5. How does quality affect the game? Superior quality ships are more likely to succeed in combat, offensively and defensively, against lesser vessels. They also earn more money during trade transactions. *6. How many ships can I have in a fleet? Players may have a maximum of six ships in a fleet. *7. What if I don't earn many badges? No doubt, this will leave you at the low end of the totem pole. However, nothing stops you from making alliances with other players. If your combined badge totals and Trade revenues are adequate, you'll still be able to upgrade your vessels. *8. How do game turns work? Every Friday evening, we process player moves. Player pages are locked against alteration during this time. If you're in combat with another player, that combat is resolved by a referee and the outcome is noted on the combatant pages. If you're conducting trade, the amount you earn is determined by the referee based on the quality of your fleet and computed on your character page. If you're traveling or exploring, ships are moved and any discoveries are noted. If you're engaging in parlay, send e-mail to cutthroat@jointhesaga.com with general information about what came of the parlay. If two parties agree to an alliance, for example, both parties must use a Parlay move and both must notify cutthroat@jointhesaga.com for the alliance to be valid. =Combat Rules= *1. A Fair quality ship can attack one ship of any quality within 1 grid square to port or starboard in any given turn. *2. A Good quality ship can attack as many as two ships of any quality within 1 grid square to port or starboard in any given turn. (Attacking multiple targets reduces the effective quality of the attacks from Good to Fair.) *3. A Great quality ship can attack as many as three ships of any quality within as many as 2 grid squares in any direction in any given turn. (Attacking multiple targets reduces the effective quality of the attacks from Great to Good. Attacks beyond 1 grid square suffer a -1 penalty per extra square.) *4. A Superb quality ship can attack as many as four ships of any quality within as many as 3 grid squares in any direction in any given turn. (Attacking multiple targets reduces the effective quality of the attacks from Superb to Great. Attacks beyond 1 grid square suffer a -1 penalty per extra square.) *5. A Legendary quality ship can attack as many as five ships of any quality within as many as 3 grid squares in any direction in any given turn. (Attacking multiple targets reduces the effective quality of the attacks from Legendary to Superb. Attacks beyond 1 grid square suffer a -1 penalty per extra square.) *6. Two ships of equal quality may combine attacks against a single target. These attacks are treated as a single attack with a modifier based on the quality of the attacking ships. **Fair+Fair: +1 **Good+Good: +2 **Great+Great: +3 **Superb+Superb: +4 **Legendary+Legendary: +5 *7. Wherever an Attack falls in your list of moves for a given ship, it effectively ends your turn and consumes three moves. So, don't put an Attack at the beginning of a sequence of moves unless you want the combat to be your *only* activity that week. *8. Combat outcomes are determined by the Sea Master, who compares the attacking roll (with any applicable modifiers) to the defending roll (with any applicable modifiers). If the attacking roll wins, the defending ship is lost with all hands and the attacker claims a commensurate portion of the defender's gold holdings. If allied ships combine efforts in the attack, the Sea Master will divvy up the plunder between the captains. Defenders and attackers automatically flee 2 grid squares in opposite directions if they match rolls. If the defending ship exceeds the attacking roll in combat against a single attacker, that attacking ship is lost with all hands and the defender claims a commensurate portion of the attacker's gold holdings. If allied ships combine efforts in the defense, the Sea Master will divvy up the plunder between the captains. If a single defending ship exceeds a combined attack roll by multiple ships by +2 or more, all attacking ships are lost with all hands and the defender claims a commensurate portion of all the attacker gold holdings. *9. No combat allowed near the neutral port of Port Poxy on Rogues Isle. *10. Rulings by the Sea Master are final. =Travel Rules= *1. A Fair quality ship can move 4 grid squares per turn in travel/exploration mode. Maximum distance to engage an enemy ship (moving to adjacent open square): 2 grid squares. *2. A Good quality ship can move 6 grid squares per turn in travel/exploration mode. Maximum distance to engage an enemy ship (moving to adjacent open square): 3 grid squares. *3. A Great quality ship can move 8 grid squares per turn in travel/exploration mode. Maximum distance to engage an enemy ship (moving to adjacent open square): 4 grid squares. *4. A Superb quality ship can move 10 grid squares per turn in travel/exploration mode. Maximum distance to engage an enemy ship (moving to adjacent open square): 5 grid squares. *5. A Legendary quality ship can move 12 grid squares per turn in travel/exploration mode. Maximum distance to engage an enemy ship (moving to adjacent open square): 6 grid squares. *6. Travel takes place on four 10x10 grids. *7. Movement is possible from Grid 1 to Grids 2 and 3, Grid 2 to Grids 1 and 4, Grid 3 to Grids 1 and 4, and Grid 4 to Grids 2 and 3. No diagonal movement possible between grids. Diagonal movement within a grid counts as 2 grid squares. =Parlay Rules= 1. Successful parlay between parties requires that they all choose parlay during the same turn in their weekly moves. Outcomes of parlay, such as formation of alliances, must be communicated to the Sea Master at cutthroat@jointhesaga.com no later than Fridays at 7 p.m. Eastern. =Exploration Rules= 1. Exploration automatically takes up three of an individual ship's available turns for the week. So, you're better of handling any Trade, Parlay, standard Travel, or Combat moves before selecting an Exploration move. 2. Exploration is only valid on grids that aren't yet fully explored. NOTE: New grids will be added over time. 3. If you discover an unoccupied island, you can claim it in the name of your fleet if you've purchased Land Claim flag markers with trade revenues. 4. After claiming an island, you may invest trade revenues in personnel to guard it and buy resources to build fortifications. The available quality of fortifications and guards (Fair to Superb) depends on the number of badges on your OtherVerse character Wiki page. 5. If you hold an island for at least two weeks, you receive trade revenues based on the quality of the personnel stationed there. 6. Ship vs. island combat is handled similar to ship vs. ship combat. A claimed island with no defenses will fall without contest during a combat turn. A claimed island with an investment in defenses enjoys the following bonuses: *'Fair Defenses:' +1 *'Good Defenses:' +2 *'Great Defenses:' +3 *'Superb Defenses:' +4 *'Legendary Defenses:' +5 If the island matches the attacking roll, the ship(s) automatically flee 3 grid squares. If the island's defense roll exceeds the attacking roll, any attacking vessels are lost with all hands. 7. Islands aren't the only things you're liable to discover while exploring. *@: A maelstrom that tests a ship's quality with a -3 modifier. Score lower than Fair and the ship is lost with all hands. Score Fair or better, the ship spends two turns/weeks breaking free and making repairs at sea. *&o&: A sea monster that tests a ship's quality with a -2 modifier. Score lower than a Fair and the ship is lost with all hands. Score Fair or better, the ship spends one turn/week breaking free and making repairs at sea. *#: Sea fog that leaves the navigator sailing blind. The ship suffers no damage, but can do nothing for two turns/weeks. 8. The Sea Master's rulings are final. =Turn Management= Each week, a player gets six moves per ship during their turn. Ships should be designated so that the Sea Master can know specifically which ship(s) are being moved. So, a sample ship turn might look something like this: '''